Overview
Problem
Provides intelligent energy management software that optimises asset performance, reduces energy waste, and maximises profitability for industrial operations.
Commercial buildings make up more than 30% of electricity consumption globally and has a key part to play in mitigating climate change globally to achieve Net Zero by 2050. By 2050, the world will need four times as much electricity generation as it does today. In order to handle this increased demand, and avoid an intermittent supply of electricity, we will either need to invest in physical grid infrastructure, or meticulously match supply to demand. Additionally, by 2050, 80% of the buildings we see today will still be in use. Hence, there is a clear need to reduce the emissions of existing buildings which has been shown to achieve up to 40% savings on energy costs by integrating energy-saving technologies.
Solution
xWatts is a cloud-based energy management enterprise software company, that automates energy management to reduce costs and emissions in commercial buildings, by directly connecting to the building management system. A key differentiator between xWatts and other competitors, such as Elyos Energy, is their use of automation. This enables a hands-off approach, saving time and resources for building managers, and opens up significant room for growth for xWatt, regarding future AI implementation methods. With a tiered pricing model starting at £500 p/m, customers can achieve a positive ROI in their first month and a 4x annual ROI, making this an extremely attractive business case for customers during the sales cycle. Additionally, the subscription-based business model reduces the need for upfront capital, lowering the barrier to entry for customers.
Market
The energy management systems market size is over $48 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach $113 billion by 2029 growing at a CAGR of 16%. In the commercial buildings vertical, the market growth will continue to be driven largely by government legislations and ESG alignment pressures for corporates from shareholders and customers. Similar to transportation, reducing carbon emissions from buildings (directly and indirectly) will be have a greater effect on moving the net zero needle, which is a huge driver for the growth of this market.
Founders
The xWatts founders, Yigit and Alexander, have strong professional and academic backgrounds, having spun-out the startup at Cambridge University where they both undertook sustainability-focused research, and an MBA (Yigit). xWatts CEO, Yigit, is a second-time founder, previously raising more than £140K for his digital-health platform company.
Yigit Akar
CEO & co-founder
Alexander Allen
Co-founder
Summary
Overall, xWatts is decarbonising a vital carbon-emitting sector (commercial buildings) in a market which has strong regulatory tailwinds supporting its growth. xWatts has an attractive SaaS business model, returning a positive ROI in one month, and a low barrier to entry to drive high customer adoption, making it an attractive business case for customers and enables scalability.